Learning numbers in French is one of the first things every beginner needs to master.

You’ll use French numbers when talking about your age, prices, dates, phone numbers, addresses, times, quantities and much more.

If you’re learning French from English, the numbers from 1 to 20 are relatively straightforward. Things become more interesting from 70 onwards, because French uses some mathematical combinations that are quite different from English!

Let’s start from the beginning.

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🇫🇷 French Numbers 1–20

Here are the first 20 numbers in French:

Number	French
1	un
2	deux
3	trois
4	quatre
5	cinq
6	six
7	sept
8	huit
9	neuf
10	dix
11	onze
12	douze
13	treize
14	quatorze
15	quinze
16	seize
17	dix-sept
18	dix-huit
19	dix-neuf
20	vingt

🗣️ A few pronunciation tips

Some French numbers can be pronounced quite differently from their spelling.

deux → roughly “duh”
trois → “trwah”
cinq → roughly “sank”
huit → roughly “weet”
douze → “dooz”
quinze → roughly “kanz”
vingt → roughly “van”

Don’t worry about making the pronunciation perfect immediately. The important thing is to listen and repeat.

Listen to the How we Pronounce the Numbers in French from a Native

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🔢 Numbers 21–69

Once you reach 20, French becomes quite logical again.

20

vingt

21

vingt et un

Literally:

twenty and one

22–29

vingt-deux
vingt-trois
vingt-quatre
vingt-cinq
vingt-six
vingt-sept
vingt-huit
vingt-neuf

Then:

30

trente

31

trente et un

32

trente-deux

And the same pattern continues.

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📊 The Tens in French

These are the numbers you need to memorise:

Number	French
20	vingt
30	trente
40	quarante
50	cinquante
60	soixante
70	soixante-dix
80	quatre-vingts
90	quatre-vingt-dix
100	cent

The first five are relatively easy:

vingt = 20
trente = 30
quarante = 40
cinquante = 50
soixante = 60

But then French takes a slightly different approach.

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🧮 How to Say 70 in French

This is where English speakers often need a little practice.

French does not use a completely new word for 70.

Instead:

70 = 60 + 10

soixante-dix

Literally:

sixty-ten

Then:

71:

soixante et onze

72:

soixante-douze

73:

soixante-treize

And so on.

Try these:

74 → soixante-quatorze

75 → soixante-quinze

76 → soixante-seize

77 → soixante-dix-sept

78 → soixante-dix-huit

79 → soixante-dix-neuf

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🧮 How to Say 80 in French

80 is another famous French number!

80 = quatre-vingts

Literally:

four twenties

Think:

4 × 20 = 80

So:

quatre-vingts

Then:

81:

quatre-vingt-un

82:

quatre-vingt-deux

83:

quatre-vingt-trois

Notice something interesting?

There is no “s” on vingt after 80 when another number follows:

quatre-vingts = 80

but:

quatre-vingt-un = 81

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🧮 How to Say 90 in French

90 follows the same mathematical pattern.

90 = 80 + 10

quatre-vingt-dix

Then:

91:

quatre-vingt-onze

92:

quatre-vingt-douze

93:

quatre-vingt-treize

And so on.

So:

90 = quatre-vingt-dix
91 = quatre-vingt-onze
92 = quatre-vingt-douze
99 = quatre-vingt-dix-neuf

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💯 100 in French

100 = cent

For example:

101 = cent un
102 = cent deux
110 = cent dix
120 = cent vingt

And:

200 = deux cents
300 = trois cents
400 = quatre cents

Notice the s in cents when it is a complete multiple of 100:

deux cents = 200

But:

deux cent un = 201

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🎂 How to Say Your Age in French

One of the first practical uses of numbers is talking about your age.

French uses avoir — “to have” — rather than être.

English:

I am 25 years old.

French:

J’ai 25 ans.

Literally:

I have 25 years.

Examples:

J’ai dix ans.
I am ten.

J’ai vingt ans.
I am twenty.

J’ai quarante-deux ans.
I am forty-two.

So if someone asks:

Quel âge as-tu ?

= How old are you?

You can answer:

J’ai trente ans.

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💰 Numbers and Prices

Numbers are also essential when shopping or ordering food.

Ça coûte combien ?

= How much does it cost?

You might hear:

Dix euros.

Vingt-cinq euros.

Quatre-vingt-dix euros.

For example:

Combien coûte le livre ?

Il coûte vingt euros.

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✏️ Exercise 1 — Write the Numbers in French

Write these numbers in French:

1. 3 → __________
2. 7 → __________
3. 11 → __________
4. 14 → __________
5. 16 → __________
6. 19 → __________
7. 21 → __________
8. 25 → __________
9. 31 → __________
10. 48 → __________
11. 52 → __________
12. 67 → __________
13. 71 → __________
14. 80 → __________
15. 84 → __________
16. 90 → __________
17. 97 → __________
18. 100 → __________

Answers

1. trois
2. sept
3. onze
4. quatorze
5. seize
6. dix-neuf
7. vingt et un
8. vingt-cinq
9. trente et un
10. quarante-huit
11. cinquante-deux
12. soixante-sept
13. soixante et onze
14. quatre-vingts
15. quatre-vingt-quatre
16. quatre-vingt-dix
17. quatre-vingt-dix-sept
18. cent

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🔄 Exercise 2 — Write the Number

Can you convert these French numbers into digits?

1. douze → ______
2. dix-neuf → ______
3. vingt-deux → ______
4. trente-cinq → ______
5. quarante-neuf → ______
6. cinquante-six → ______
7. soixante-treize → ______
8. quatre-vingt-un → ______
9. quatre-vingt-douze → ______
10. cent → ______

Answers

1. 12
2. 19
3. 22
4. 35
5. 49
6. 56
7. 73
8. 81
9. 92
10. 100

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🧠 Exercise 3 — What’s My Number?

Read the clues and find the number.

1.

I am between 10 and 20.
I am dix + quatre.

→ __________

2.

I am 60 + 8.

→ __________

3.

I am 4 × 20.

→ __________

4.

I am 80 + 7.

→ __________

5.

I am 60 + 15.

→ __________

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🎯 Exercise 4 — Numbers in Real Life

Complete the sentences.

1.

Quel âge as-tu ?

→ J’ai __________ ans.

2.

Combien coûte le café ?

→ Il coûte __________ euros.

3.

Quelle est ta date d’anniversaire ?

→ Mon anniversaire est le __________.

4.

Combien de frères et sœurs as-tu ?

→ J’ai __________ frère(s) et __________ sœur(s).

5.

Quel est ton numéro de téléphone ?

→ Mon numéro est __________.

The goal is to make the student use numbers in meaningful sentences, rather than simply reciting 1–100.

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🗣️ A Simple Speaking Challenge

Try to answer these questions in French without looking at your notes:

Quel âge as-tu ?

Quelle est ta date d’anniversaire ?

Combien de frères et sœurs as-tu ?

Combien de personnes y a-t-il dans ta famille ?

Combien coûte ton café préféré ?

Quel est ton numéro de téléphone ?

You can start with very simple answers:

J’ai vingt-cinq ans.

Mon anniversaire est le 15 août.

J’ai deux frères.

Then gradually make your answers longer.

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🌟 The Most Important Numbers to Master First

If you’re just starting French, don’t worry about memorising every number immediately.

First make sure you know:

1–20

un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, seize, dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, vingt

Then learn:

20–60

vingt, trente, quarante, cinquante, soixante

And finally concentrate on the slightly trickier:

70 → soixante-dix

80 → quatre-vingts

90 → quatre-vingt-dix

Once these patterns make sense, you can count all the way to 100.

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🇫🇷 Learn French Numbers Through Conversation

Numbers are much easier to remember when you use them for something.

Instead of simply repeating:

un, deux, trois, quatre…

try using numbers to talk about your age, your family, your birthday, prices, dates and things you actually care about.

That’s the approach I use in my French lessons: combining grammar and vocabulary with real conversation and practical French, so that you don’t just know a word — you know how to use it.

If you’re an English speaker learning French and you’d like to build your confidence speaking from the very beginning, get in touch to find out about personalised French lessons tailored to your level and goals.